The two squads were announced by Gideon Sam, the President of the the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc), as part of the Road to London campaign.

 

Sam said that the early identification of provisional squads was a first for South Africa’s Olympic and Paralympic challenge and showed the intent to achieve on 12 Olympic medals and a top five Paralympic placing in London in 2012.

 

The Olympic quads is split into potential medallists and athletes who have the ability to improve and perhaps challenge for a medal.

 

The Paralympic squad, which also includes triple Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius, includes only potential medallists.

Sam said: “The Federations have identified talent they believe are potential medal winners, not only in 2012 but also in 2016.

“The individuals within the two squads will be evaluated throughout the year and the option is there to increase both squads.
 

“If athletes don’t deliver in the buildup to 2012 there is no guarantee they will make the respective Games’ squads.”
 

Athletics and swimming, traditionally the two strongest codes, make up the bulk of the squads, but Sam said individuals from lesser profiled codes had been identified, and that there were also fringe athletes who would be monitored.
 

He said: “Funds have been made available from the National Lottery to specifically prepare our Olympic and Paralympic campaign and that includes the funding of the two respective provisional squads.
 

“Sascoc will be responsible for the financial support of these two squads and the funding, approved by the National Lottery, is separate from the R400 million (£31 million) National Lottery funding agreed on earlier in the year for identified Federations."

 

Since returning to the Olympics in 1992 after a 32-year absence of the country's apartheid regime, South Africa has won 19 medals, four of which have been gold.

 

But at the Beijing Games last year they won only one medal when Mokoena finished second in the long jump.

 

South Africa were far more successful in the Paralympics where they finished sixth overall with 30 medals, including 21 gold.

 

The most successful competitor was du Toit, who won five gold medals.

 

She had also made history a few weeks earlier when she became the first female amputee to compete in the Olympics.